Worcesteria July 3, 2014

Thursday

Jul 3, 2014 at 5:00 AM

OZ RETURNS: It had been joked that if Mike O'Brien showed up with his new employer, WinnCompanies, for the ribbon cutting on the new Voke Lofts in Worcester this week, he would do so in Oz-like fashion. That is to say, he would stay behind the scenes. Well, the former city manager was in attendance, and while he was not exactly the man behind the curtain, he did stay relatively low-key once the actual ceremony started. While his boss, Gilbert Winn, emceed a rather long event in the open and sun-splashed courtyard of the new mixed-rate housing complex, O'Brien was seen chatting quietly with his new colleagues and bringing Winn some water, while also whispering something in his ear. It might have been something like, "Jazz it up, maestro!" Indeed, with O'Brien not taking part in the speaking part of the ceremony, something was missing - the Mike-isms Worcester had grown so accustomed to hearing. There was no "can do, will do," no "ignoring the cognoscenti," no witty cracks at someone in the audience. Before and after the ceremony, however, O'Brien clearly basked in the congratulations, "how you been" and seeing former colleagues and community partners. "It's like coming to a family reunion," he said. "You feel like you're part of something bigger." One couldn't help but point out to O'Brien, as if he wasn't already aware, that his name has been dragged into discussions of a possible strong mayor in Worcester. He steered clear of that, but admitted to missing the job. "I miss the people, my staff, terribly. I miss my partners in the community." Is a return in the offing? "I think public service flows through my veins, but there's a time and a place." Stay tuned ...

STRONG WILLED: Ah, the slow, hot, news-less days of summer. They don't last long, but when they arrive without fail each year, the media and public glom onto the closest thing to juicy they can find. While it may not qualify as juicy, per se, talk of a possible strong mayor in Worcester is getting its play once more. It has been discussed for years, of course, but with City Manager Ed Augustus Jr. leaving in October and a July 15 deadline for applicants, the strong mayor rumors are swirling again. Is it time to take it seriously? Until someone or some people approach the city with a petition (one way to start process) or councilors, through Home Rule Petition, seek legislative approval for a vote of the people (the other way to do it), no. Some folks might think the timing is right for a move to be made, but it would seem to do anything to help land a qualified city manager (would you take the job if you thought the city could eventually nix the entire position?). One thing appears evident: people are not happy with city government right now. "When we did the listening tour for the city manager, people felt disconnected [from government] somehow," says Mayor Joe Petty, who would be a probable candidate for strong mayor. "I was caught by surprise. There's a perception out there that people are disconnected I think that's why people would want a strong mayor."

JUST IN CASE: Oh, and for the record, if you were wondering whether Augustus has filed an application for permanent city manager, the entirely unsurprising word is he has not.

WOULD THEY OR WOULDN'T THEY: Staying on the topic of strong mayor, the question becomes: Is there an appetite among councilors for pursuing a change of government (assuming that an outside petition did not come their way)? Not all the councilors could be reached on this short week, but there seemed to be a sort of "eh" attitude about it. Petty says, "I could go either way. I haven't really thought about it." At-Large Councilor Moe Bergman and District 5 Councilor Gary Rosen are both in the "not sure" column at the moment. Rosen appears to be the last of the Mohicans on the Council in holding out hope that Augustus will stay as city manager. "I'm still leaning toward Ed Augustus," he says, adding with a laugh, "If we can't make him our city manager, let's make Ed Augustus our strong mayor." Bergman still has reservations, but says he is "less opposed than I was in the past." Among the positives of a strong mayor form of government, he says: “having one person make the decisions and having one spokesperson for the city." District 3 Councilor George Russell says he would be in favor of putting it on a ballot even though he is, "still not sold on it." But, he adds, "It's a very long process and our focus should be on getting a strong city manager." At-Large Councilor Mike Gaffney, admitting he has had his battles with the city manager form of government, nonetheless would be a "no" vote on moving ahead on a Home Rule Petition.

A DIFFERENT TACT: Whether voters jump unhesitatingly on her bandwagon remains to be seen, but Attorney General Martha Coakley, who is running for governor, certainly seems to be doing things different than when she took victory for granted and ended up losing a US Senate race to upstart Republican Scott Brown. For starters, she is assuming responsibility for the loss and admitting she screwed up. Second, although she is not exactly driving around in a pickup truck, she appears to be doing more of the direct-to-the-people thing. She is also flirting a bit with church and state. During the recent opening of her Worcester campaign headquarters at 256 Park Ave., right next door to El Basha Restaurant, Coakley said she had just come from a church event and started talking about Jacob's Ladder, a segue into saying how all Bay Staters should be able to climb the ladder.

FACES IN THE CROWD: There was, of course, a distinct Woostah flavor to the gathering at Coakley's headquarters Sunday, June 29, but it was nice to see Blackstone Valley represented as well. Former Uxbridge Selectman and Planning Board Member Marian Baker was there, as was Lisa Mosczynski, whose mother, Shirley, is a former Douglas selectman. Coming out for Worcester was Mosaic's Brenda Jenkins, school security chief Rob Pezzella, School Committee member Dianna Biancheria and 17th Worcester District Democratic state rep hopeful Moses Dixon. He is locked in a campaign with fellow Democrats Mike Germain, a former city councilor, and Doug Belanger, a Leicester selectman. The winner of their primary faces Republican Kate Campanale.

A REAL WORKOUT: The aforementioned Gaffney is known to work out, having posted pictures of his home gym on his Facebook page. He has been getting in quite the workout outside lately, as he stumps for two Republican candidates headed for elections this year. The aforementioned Campanale has been at Gaffney's side frequently at events, as has Stephanie Fattman. The latter, of course, is challenging incumbent Democrat Steve Abraham for register of probate. Her husband, Ryan, a state rep, is shooting for the Senate as he challenges incumbent Democrat Richard Moore. The trio of Campanale, Gaffney and Fattman (now there's a law firm for you) popped up recently at both the Asian and Juneteenth festivals in Worcester. Gaffney had been rumored a potential probate candidate before Fattman jumped in the race. Lest you think Gaffney is supporting an all- GOP slate this year, he is not - he is in Democratic state rep hopeful Josh Perro's corner in the 16th Worcester District.

WINN-ING: Revisiting our earlier mention of WinnCompanies' new Voke Lofts near Gateway Park, here are some interesting tidbits about the project: After 30 days of occupancy, the building was 85 percent leased, with 100 other applicants waiting for an apartment; past Worcester Vocational School grads worked on the project; Becker College, according to Gilbert Winn, will offer free computer classes to residents; more than 230 construction jobs were created, along with three permanent jobs; Winn donated $25,000 to the NEADS foundation to help train a special assistance dog; $1.2 million in city HOME funds went toward the project; O'Brien convinced Winn to join the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce recently; there are 42 affordable units and 42 market-rate units in the building, among the choicest of which is a two bedroom, two bath duplex.

WHOSE IS IT? Tom Valenti owns a single-family house at 100 Orient St. Next door is a triple-decker. Through an easement, he shares a driveway with those occupants. The rub, however, is that the driveway is not on his property, even though on a city map, much of it is shown on his side of the property line. The other rub is, as it turns out, Valenti has been paying the taxes on the driveway when he should not have been. He says City Assessor Bill Ford admitted an employee erred recently when telling Valenti that the driveway was his - it is not. Ford also told him that, while it was a gaffe - and while he should not be paying taxes on it - the actual amount comes out to pennies on the dollar. Valenti says the assessor assures him the problem will be fixed, although not for the past fiscal year. If Valenti did not file an abatement, he would not be eligible for reimbursement on that.

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